It has been 10 years since JustFrances.com entered the blogosphere, so I thought it was time for a reflective post to mark the milestone. After all, the average…
On my way to the Death Café a couple of weeks ago, I wandered through a couple of old kirkyards at the base of the Edinburgh Castle.…
I attended my first “Death Café” last weekend. I had heard about these events in the past but had never had the time to attend,…
It has been a long time coming, but I am finally a doctor. Oh yes, I am now officially Dr Frances Ryan. The PhD kind…
Regular readers will know that my PhD Dreams have been an important part of my life for a few years now. And excitedly, my PhD Dreams will…
It has been 14 years since I became Mrs Ryan, although most of that time has been spent as a widow rather than a wife. Yet…
On my way home from visiting my late husband’s grave, I stopped off in Berwick-Upon-Tweed for some adventuring. I thought that it would be a good way to…
Today marks ten years of widowhood; ten years since my darling husband died so unexpectedly in the middle of the night. These past ten years have…
Today is Thursday, 21 February. I was born on Thursday, 21 February. And on this very Thursday, 21 February, I am 21 in Scrabble tiles.…
Today’s post* is brought to you by a writing prompt. The prompt is to “write a list of your favourite holiday activities”. I wanted to…
I am a widow. I was widowed when I was a young woman of 35 and my life has never been the same since. In the…
When we think about the grieving that happens after the death of a loved one, we often think about the suffering those left behind are…
Yesterday was (would have been?) my 12th wedding anniversary. And much like last year, I spent the day distracting myself with my PhD before taking some time to…
Today marks eight years since his heart stopped beating. And in that very same moment, my own heart shattered into a million pieces. Remarkably, my shattered heart…
I love Zadar! I really do. I arrived here last Sunday for an academic conference and I will be travelling home tomorrow. But in this one week, I fell in…
I received my new American passport yesterday. But despite this being my third passport, it will also mark several passport firsts in my life. But…
Eleven years ago, I entered a beautiful dream world: The dream of happily ever after with my amazing new husband. And whilst being a Mrs…
Another year has passed since my beloved Paul died. And so, another year has been spent making the journey to lay flowers on his grave. I’d…
I ran my last Loch Ness Marathon yesterday. (Maybe.) And I accomplished a PB whilst doing it – which was totally unexpected. Even better, I am nowhere…
As part of my desire to create better, healthier routines for my physical and mental well-being, I decided I needed to get back into the habit of enjoying my…